


Better Than Predictable

by scy



Category: Ultimate X-Men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-01-01
Updated: 2010-01-01
Packaged: 2017-10-05 14:44:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/42837
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scy/pseuds/scy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Peter does a bit of learning</p>
            </blockquote>





	Better Than Predictable

**Author's Note:**

> Following events in Ultimate X-men #50. Please take any discrepancies as a result of this piece being solidly placed in AU territory.

Hurting Peter's teammates did wonders for long-term memory.

After their initial meeting, Gambit's face was easily recognizable. Even if the individual in question was standing outside the gates of the Institute in the dark.

Peter walked up to him, posture non-threatening. There was no need to repeat what bruises already said. They both knew what the other was capable of.

He commented without preamble, "You blew half of Wolverine's face off with that blast."

"He wouldn't get out of my way." If Gambit was bothered by Peter's abrupt manner he hid it behind a lazy slouch against a telephone pole.

The very *calm* of Gambit made Peter want to reach out and do something hurtful. That he didn't was an indication of change.

He was, admittedly, enjoying the soft life. While not every aspect of being an X-man was simple, he had a stability that could not be taken for granted. Even though there was no written charter that stated 'all mutants are welcome at Xavier's,' word had spread.

If a mutant showed up on the doorstep and needed a place to rest they were welcome. Provided they passed a psychic probe, of course.

Gambit could have accepted the Professor's first invitation and been sheltered. It was obvious that he wasn't so trusting as to take such an apparently impossible offer at face value. Peter guessed that few times in his life had anything turned out for the best. No doubt he felt it wisest to be the one taking the first opportunity to leave. That was by no means an assurance that he wouldn't leave doubt as to whether or not his decision was final.

That seemed the most likely motive behind his appearance at the mansion. He was an unknown, an individual whose loyalties might be bought, but who couldn't let himself settle for simple arrangements.

Taking on the X-men hadn't intimidated him. With the sort of intelligence Fenris had given him he'd known how to handle each individual's powers. Some were taken on directly while the rest were distracted. They had been trained to fight as a team; he had nobody to watch his back. It was possible that he had been the only trustworthy agent available or that it had been decided that a single person could retrieve their target with less difficulty than a team. Whatever disadvantages he may have coped with he seemed to prefer solo missions.

Gambit's look was almost scolding.

"I'd think that you would understand. The job was to steal an item. Then I got paid. Simple business transaction."

"You were kidnapping a girl, not a diamond."

"Steal, not kidnap, there's a difference."

"Really."

"One's easier to transport, for one thing. Teenage girls are shrill when they're upset."

He shrugged and added, "It was just a job."

"It wasn't right."

This time there was definite disdain in Gambit's voice. "Don't tell me you didn't cater to the needs of the customer. They wanted weapons, you delivered them."

"It seems as though you know a lot about me."

"I know about all of the X-men." Gambit smirked. "You're famous, remember?"

"Infamous, more like." Despite all the 'public announcements of confidence' following the 'New Mutants' incident, there were still murmurings about how dangerous the Professor was.

Gambit made a show of looking at the brass plate where the words 'Xavier's Institute' was engraved.

"Not very smart to put a target on yourselves like that,"

"We can handle the attention."

"Mm." Gambit stared past the gates onto the grounds. If most of the security measures hadn't been invisible, Peter would have thought the Cajun was assessing them.

"Did you want to come inside?"

Gambit's smile was so brief that Peter guessed the expression was genuine.

"Non, merci. I don't think I'd be finding a warm welcome."

Peter raised an eyebrow. "Can you blame them?"

This time, Gambit's smile was that of a professional.

"No more than you should a thief just trying to get by."

"If things don't work out with your friends, you can always come back." Peter sighed. "It appears that nearly anyone is welcome here these days."

"I'll think about it." With a courtly bow, Gambit walked away as though daring anyone to think that he might have had any other intention all along.

Peter waited until he had vanished around a turn in the road and then went back inside the mansion.

Between the various public-relations duties the students were given and the regular assignments that had to be completed there were little time to reflect on brief acquaintances. So long as Gambit wasn't actively trying to 'steal' members of his team Peter didn't much care what he did.

The Professor kept Cerebro close at hand, though, and monitored the activities of anyone he thought might somehow come into contact with his students.

Peter often thought that telepaths were too voyeuristic for their own good. He was careful not to think such things too loudly.

So when Xavier told him that there had been a number of skillful and high-profile thefts in Europe- all of artwork of escalating value, Peter suspected ulterior motives.

It wasn't as though his desires hadn't been easily read by Jean. Who knew what the Professor thought he could accomplish by rekindling Peter's protective instincts.

It didn't help that he seemed to be the only one with any open resentment. To everyone else, Gambit was just another one of 'Them,' another mutant who didn't belong to the team and therefore could be more easily dismissed.

Jean would have told him that he had 'issues.' There were a few reasons why he didn't try and sort his head out with her help. The Professor was a non-issue.

Peter remembered the nausea when he realized that he was looking at Magneto, and the man *didn't recognize them*.

A man should be able to know his friends, and more importantly, his enemies. There had never been a discussion about what would happen if some of the man's more determined detractors came looking for him. He wouldn't have known how to defend himself.

Changing someone's life like that wasn't a gift, it was laming a being who might use his abilities in ways that weren't popular, but who needed them to survive.

So many times he had walked into arms deals knowing that if he had to, he had the ability to withstand nearly anything.

Presumably the Professor had already anticipated the possibility of a threat toward Magneto and had a plan for such an event.

Xavier was a good man. Accomplished, brilliant, and enough of an idealist to let him rationalize using his abilities in ways that were morally ambiguous.

Nothing was ever simple with him.

Peter kept that in mind as he sat listened to the Professor's latest 'update' on Gambit.

"Not to be rude, Professor, but why do you keep me informed of this man's movements? Shouldn't Storm or Cyclops be the ones alerted to his activities?"

"It's good for each student to familiarize themselves with the criminal element. Gambit has proven himself to be a gifted thief. Keeping abreast of his jobs is something of an advanced exercise. With your own experience I thought you might enjoy the challenge."

If Peter hadn't been suspicious before, the tiny twitch of Xavier's lips would have been a red flag. It wasn't a smile, but only because the man restrained himself.

"I thought that you might like to get out of the mansion for a bit. You students have been doing an impressive job of late and it's a good idea to relax once in awhile."

The smirk was more pronounced.

"That's a good idea." Sneaky, Peter thought, and the Professor raised an eyebrow.

"I will make sure and note anything that might prove to be of use to the team."

"I'm sure that I can trust your judgment."

Plane ticket in hand, Peter left the study, convinced that if he *thought* static, the Professor would be wise enough not to look deeper.

Manipulative, invasive busybody.

A mutant whose looks were radically out of synch with acceptable possibilities had trouble moving through the everyday world without attracting potentially unwanted attention. In contrast, Peter had no trouble passing through customs. He had always known that, although his work took him into danger he would probably come out more or less alright. Part of his safety was due to the secret he kept.

On the other hand, Gambit's accent and unusual eyes made him memorable to those he met.

Peter simply had to determine who might have seen the Cajun and question them.

With the right connections it wasn't long before Peter had an idea of what Gambit was doing on the West Coast.

There was more attention directed at mutants back East. With the Xavier's Institute and the political climate difference was equal to a spotlight. Away from such intent scrutiny, extremes were looked at without so many misgivings.

There was a certain *ease* to life where sea and sand were part of the scenery. Those people who lived on the coast had a deep-seated calm that stemmed from the belief that there were forces which reached beyond all obligations that sought to hurry them past a good time.

He didn't quite understand why he'd been chosen to seek Gambit out, or what he was supposed to learn from the man.

Most of his responsibilities were not in the area of blatant observation.

Working unseen was more his style.

To walk up to a target and directly address them felt unnatural. His clothing stuck to him in the evening warmth and Peter shucked his coat.

As he approached, Gambit looked up. He took in Peter's admittedly 'military correct' stance and grimaced.

"You people act as though it's some kind of crime to use your abilities as a way of earning a living."

"Kidnapping *is* a crime."

"I never said that you had to agree with me."

"If your choices result in laws being broken then it's likely that we will find ourselves disagreeing with you."

Gambit gestured to their surroundings.

"I don't see any laws being broken here. So why're you here?"

"If you want to 'do business' without our interference, it would be a good idea to make yourself less conspicuous."

The look directed at him was disbelieving. "You've come all this way because you 'heard I was in town?' Are you going to chaperone me around the world?"

Whether or not this was what he had been sent to do, Peter guessed that the possibility was not one that hadn't been anticipated by the Professor.

It seemed that Gambit had come to a similar conclusion.

"Your Professor doesn't seem like the type to let his 'wards' play away from home without some ulterior motive."

"He worries about us."

"Likes to make sure you do things his way, I bet."

Cyclops would have said something about the necessity of order when impulse would lead to some disaster. If Logan hadn't already had a go at rearranging Gambit's anatomy his response would have been colorful. The senior class had the most experience in dealing with people who weren't willing to listen to what they considered reasonable courses of action. The younger students wouldn't have been well-prepared to handle someone like Gambit.

Even Peter wasn't sure what to do.

It was unlike him to want to form an acquaintance with someone who he considered an enemy. There was a chameleon quality to Gambit. He might seem to be trustworthy, but then again, that could be the act and his actual intent could be something more contrary.

If the Professor had wanted to pick a difficult recruiting assignment, he had done an excellent job. Judging by his movements over the continent, Gambit wasn't one to stay in an area for long. A thief had to be able to wander, and being a member of the X-men would probably be too restrictive. That was if the X-men were willing to let him continue to break laws at his leisure.

"The Professor is not a man who likes leaving things to chance."

"Bit of a control freak, I bet." Gambit snorted, and Peter saw him shed a little of the 'sun warmed goodwill.' He was cynical about life in a way that comes from getting by in places where there were several meanings for everything said and all of them dirty. No question that Remy had done violent things. Out of the walls of a secure existence where such situations were never considered, that was often the only option.

Instead of responding to the digs at the Professor, Peter settled himself on the low wall beside Gambit, aware that he was being examined.

"You don't mind him taking charge of your life?"

Peter kept silent until it was clear that Gambit was determined to get an answer.

"I've worked for less pleasant people."

"How long do you think this is gonna last? Going along with a dream that's so impossible?"

"I believe in what he's trying to do. And it's better than wasting time with petty crime."

"I think I've moved past 'petty crime.' Nothing I used to do ever paid this good."

"You're in it for the money, then."

"Why not? I've gotta eat. Tired of living on the streets."

"But you don't *have* to do this."

There was a fierceness in those oddly contrasting eyes that was palpable. "You like what you do 'Colossus,' I like my job." There was in Gambit's eyes that made Peter feel as though the other man felt a bit sorry for the X-men and what they were trying to do.

"All the papers say that there's a 'war' going on. You put yourselves out there and most of the time nobody even cares why you're doing it. Is it worth it when you lose one of your own?"

"Yes. Even more now. Those who are lost must be honored by our actions. It is the only way to show how much they meant to us."

"They mean so much that you have to try and control them? You can't put a lid on someone's powers forever. There are 'gifts' that need fine-tuning."

He made a frustrated noise. "Fenris would've helped Rogue take charge. No gloves, no worries."

"Yes, and all that she had to do was go back to a life of crime. She chose to leave that behind her. She shouldn't have to pay for her well-being."

"You don't think she wants to be more like other kids?"

"We can't change people just so that they do what we want."

He wondered about the source of Gambit's vehemence. "Don't you have people that you would fight to protect? Family? Friends?"

Gambit's eyes were fire without traditional incendiary devices.

"Family? Non."

"But you do understand what it means to have people depend on you. To have commitments," Peter persisted, trying to understand the divide between their points of view. If two mutants couldn't figure out a way to live peacefully when they both had unique abilities to make them only similar to those outside the norm, then there was little hope for the rest of the world.

"If you care, you have to let them handle things their own way. No matter if it's right or not."

Remy nodded, conceding the point as he moved a handful of sand from one palm to the other. As it began to glow an improbable reddish shade, he tossed the sand upwards and it exploded with a *bang* that made Peter jump.

He glanced around to see if anyone had noticed the noise, but nobody had focused on them as the source of the disturbance.

A smile slipped past his control. "So there is honor among thieves?"

Gambit smirked back. "It's not anything that most people would recognize, but sometimes."

"So we're not that different, it's just what we choose to devote ourselves to."

With Gambit still beside him it was easy to think that they were just two guys having a lively debate. Conflict seemed a long ways off.

The challenge seemed to have settled back down.

Gone too was the glimpse of what else Gambit could be. As he settled back down there was a perfect slipping over of *handsome, flighty, charming* mask that had been slipping. When long, elegant hands gathered wavy hair out of his face and into a ponytail it was firmly back in place.

"Now that you've found me, what're you planning on doing?"

Even with the time Peter had spent dealing with the press, he still found it hard to put his thoughts into words that made sense.

"I don't know," he admitted. "There wasn't an objective to this mission. Not one that was shared with me."

"Hm."

"Obviously you're alright, a little paranoid about people liking you, but that can be overcome." Gambit ticked off facts on his fingers as though counting down possible topics.

"I obviously don't need to grab that little firebrand again, and I'm not going to tell you what my current job is. That leaves your friends."

Based on the way Gambit paused to thoroughly *consider* each of the X-men in terms of their importance to Peter, the Russian felt sure that he wasn't going to like the direction Gambit was taking.

He was right. The Cajun hit on the one person about whom Peter didn't want to share his feelings.

"How is Wolverine doing anyway? He and the Weather Witch seemed close." Gambit eyed Peter closely. "It doesn't bother you that he's found someone else, again?"

"Logan and I are friends."

"How many times have I heard that? All that means is you want more but you settle for what you can get."

"I get your meaning. I don't want to discuss Logan any further."

"You should look around for someone who isn't so-"

"Unattainable?"

"Yeah."

"Not many people are interested in retired Siberian gun-runners whose skin turns into metal."

"You might be surprised."

Gambit was right, Peter was startled.

"You."

"Why wouldn't I be?"

Peter stared at him, hoping his confusion was obvious.

"There are a lot of pretty faces, Peter. I've seen my share. And I know how to look past beauty."

"Why would you be interested in me? Is there something of the Professor's that you're trying to steal?"

Gambit looked him over slowly. "It'd be a lot nicer to go through you than Xavier, I will agree with you on that one. But no, at the moment there is nothing which *belongs* to Xavier that I want."

Peter didn't get out to clubs or other venues where he might get a whole lot of experience his own age who could be normal enough to have some of his problems. There was no one to go with him and he didn't feel comfortable expressing an interest in such things. If indeed, he had any to express. Crowds of people and bright lights put him on alert for any threats. Going to such a place wouldn't be as relaxing as it was supposed to. Had he been one to go out and flirt then he might have been better prepared to react to Gambit's confessed attraction. It seemed a little unreal when he compared it to the lesson of not dwelling on what couldn't be attained.

"You're kidding." It had to be some kind of joke. "This joke is in poor taste and I don't find it funny."

"Do I look as though I'm plotting to work some kind of mind-whammy on you, Colossus? It's not as if your people wouldn't spot it and step in to save you. What would be the point?"

"Maybe you like messing with people's feelings."

"You team is screwed up enough emotionally that I don't think it could get more twisted."

"Rogue, what about her?"

"What about her?"

"She's beautiful."

"Yeah, she's pretty. So're you."

"I just thought that..."

"We bonded over our criminal pasts?"

"Not likely. Girl's not too friendly with the homme who wanted her for a payday."

That was true. Rogue didn't take well to being used by omnipotent shadow groups who used threats to make her cooperate. Few people did.

"You could win her over." It wouldn't be too hard; Gambit had a manner about him that was so inviting that it would likely be hard to stay mad at him for long.

"Probably could."

"Why don't you?"

"Girl's fallen for the ice cube."

"He's fond of Kitty." That fact had been revealed to the discomfort of all three parties when Rogue caught them *getting closer.*

"So? Since when has love been smart?"

Gambit's look was uncomfortably knowing.

Wolverine had been hanging out with Storm. 'Escorting her' places. Acting almost *friendly* in his own way.

Peter wasn't *that* jealous, but he supposed that having Logan to himself had become a habit. And there was more in the way they stood next to each other than there had been.

"Take Rogue for example. She can't touch anyone, refuses to let people with the technology and expertise help her, and chooses to stay with the guy who can't figure out which girl he wants. Not very smart, and someone is going to get hurt in that triangle."

"For someone who doesn't live in the mansion you seem to have an accurate grasp of the situation."

"It's a skill."

"Of course, she chose where she wanted to be and now it's up to her to accept her lot in life."

"You're awfully jaded. She and Bobby may yet work it out."

"They're kids who like each other but don't have any idea how to deal with the angles of what they've made."

Peter knew something of what it was like to be the one on the outside, but he didn't say as much. He took it as a given that Gambit was aware of his various romantic thoughts and how little he dared do about them.

"It's not going to hurt you to have someone like me think you're hot." He added, "I'm not going to jump you."

"No, if you do stay interested you'll just kidnap me."

"Nah, you're a bit too heavy to sling over my shoulder."

Peter couldn't hold back a smile. he had trouble visualizing doing a repeat of Rogue's retrieval.

"If you tried it I'd knock you around."

"That'd be a little off-putting," Gambit agreed.

The ease was what he had to be wary of. It would be easy to let down his guard with Gambit and to forget they were adversaries.

He reflected that whatever lesson the Professor was trying to teach, there were several that he could choose to take away from this encounter.

The lines of loyalty weren't always solid and there were other ways of doing what the X-men did.

Even among those who were termed 'extremists,' different methodologies were practiced. Some were more easy to understand than others.

He'd noticed that while Gambit had confessed that he thought Peter was attractive, he respected personal boundaries. Some of that distance was no doubt partly a result of Gambit's experiences. He knew how to be the center of attention and give that back to someone so that they wanted to get even closer. Limits were nothing new to him.

To him, the fact that the idea of reciprocating attraction was so foreign to Peter was amusing. Making him familiar with flirtation was apparently, high on a list of 'Important Tasks.' It would be done slowly so as not to make Peter uncomfortable.

'All in good time' was a concept that hadn't figured much in his life lately. No schedule, deadline or expectations to be met.

If, when Peter leaned back, he wasn't fully sure of what he was doing, he was convinced that it was worthwhile.


End file.
